топик Оrganized Crime

In addition to that segment of the population made up of i n dividual criminals acting independently or in small groups, there exists a so — called underworld of criminal organiz a tions engaged in offenses such as organized vice (drugs, prostitution, pornography, loan — sharking, gambling), cargo theft, fraud, robbery, ki d napping for ransom , and the demanding of “protection” pa y ments. [ Loan — sh arking is lending money at extremely high rates of interest]. In the United States and Canada, the principal source of income for organized crime is the supply of goods and services that are illegal but for which there is continued public demand.

Organized crime in the United States is a set of shifting coalitions between groups of gangsters, business people, politicians, and u n ion leaders. Many of these people have legitimate jobs and sources of income. In Britain groups of organized criminals have not de veloped in this way, principally because the supply and consumption of alc o hol and opiates (a type of drug that contains opium and makes you want to sleep), gambling, and prostitution remain legal but partly regulated. This reduces the profitability of sup pl y ing such demands criminally. British crime organizations tend to be relatively short — term groups drawn t o- gether for specific projects, such as fraud and armed robbery, from a pool of professional criminals. Crime syndicates in Australia deal with narco tics, cargo theft and racketeering . [Syndicate is a group of people or comp a nies who join together in order to achieve a particular aim. Racketeering is a di s honest way of obtaining money, such as by threa t ening people]. In Japan, there are gangs that spec ialize in vice and extortion.

In many Third World countries, apart from the drug trade, the principal form of organized crime is black — marketeering , i n cluding smuggling and corruption in the granting of licenses to import goods and to export foreign exchan ge . Armed robbery, cattle theft, and maritime piracy and fraud are organized crime activities in which pol i ticians have less complicity.